Saturday, March 16, 2024

Insanity

I know I've said it before but...  What is wrong with me??


Because I'm too lazy to wind the yarn for the project that I really want to make, I decided to start knitting another blanket.  I'm calling it the Insanity Blanket because, obviously, I've gone completely insane.  

I'm using scrap fingering weight yarn and US2 needles.  Have I mentioned I've gone completely insane??

I've based the pattern on Knit Pick's Hue Shift, but I've made a few modifications of my own.  I'm still using two colors per mitered square, but there's no plan for what colors come next.  I'll use one skein until it runs out and change the contrasting color for each square.  I'm also going to knit the entire blanket in one piece rather than in Hue Shift's four pieces that have to be grafted together.  I'm also using a differnt number of cast on stitches since mine is using fingering and Hue Shift calls for worsted. 

I also plan for this blanket to fit over a queen size bed.  

And all of this because I'm too lazy to wind one skein of yarn.  Good grief!

Yes, I'm pretty sure I've gone completely insane.

Meanwhile, spring has sprung here in Virginia and I've been thankful to spend some time outdoors.


Time outdoors with Hayden.  She loves her trampoline! 


She turned four recently and I can not get over how much more skilled she is this year than last.  Last year she couldn't figure out how to pedal any of her riding things and this year,  well, let's just say, Nana is taking up running again in an effort to keep up with her on that bike.  

Oh, and she blew out her candles on the first try this year instead of just spitting on the cake!  My little grandbaby is growing up so fast!


Saturday, March 2, 2024

Working the WIPs

First, let me just say, I am so, so happy February is over!

Now, let's talk knitting.

I'm so proud of myself!  Remember my plan to finish something from the WIP pile then knit something new, then something from the WIP pile....?  Well, finishing the Rambling Rows afghan that had been hanging around since 2020 felt so good, I've just kept on grabbing WIPs instead of starting something new.


I finished a simple scarf made from Homespun yarn that was given to me a long time ago.  (Big box store Homespun, not hand-spun.)  It feels good to have it off the needles because it's been hanging around for a long time too.  

And the beaded cowl is finished.  Obviously still needs to be blocked, but it's off the needles.  It's an infinity type scarf without the infinity twist.  I used Palette yarn and randomly placed beads on it.  I really enjoy doing beaded knitting.  I'm slow as molasses with it, but I enjoy it.

By the way, if you shop at crochet.com, which is affiliated with Knit Picks, use coupon code CROCHETMONTH during the month of March and you can save 10 - 20% depending on the amount of your purchase. A $75 purchase gets you 10%, a $100 purchase gets you 15% off and $150 and up gets you 20% off.

I am trying very, very hard not to visit crochet.com because this coming Tuesday will mark 150 days (basically 5 months) without buying yarn.  My goal is to go six months.  We'll see if I can make it that long.

But back to today's topic.... finishing WIPs.


I've beaded eleven more pairs of socks.  Okay, they weren't exactly considered WIPs, but I did have the socks laying around plus some of the beads, and I desperately need to get my shop restocked.  Plus, Hayden's birthday is coming up and she asked me to make her some more.  She specifically asked for rainbow, but I am head over heels in love with that blue/greem combo.  Just looking at them makes me feel like I'm on island water.  I could use some island water right now!

Anyway....


Not exciting looking, but exciting to me.... I'm on zebra striped sock #2.  Just three days ago, sock #1 was only a few rows past the ribbing.  These socks have been in the WIP pile for quite a while too.  Not sure why.  The yarn is Patons Kroy Socks which I like so.... Maybe I found the black and white stripes to be too boring.  Or the US 1 needles too small and slow.  Who knows.  Whatever, I'm on a roll with them now.

Once those zebra socks are done, all that's left in the WIP crate is one more pair of socks, a hat, and 2 shawls.  I really hope I can keep motivated to get them all finished.  I would love to end up with an empty crate.  

Happy March and happy knitting!


Saturday, February 24, 2024

Stupid February

Have I ever mentioned how much I dislike the month of February?  February has never been a good month for me and this year .... Well, this year, February simply sucks.  First, I had that stomach bug that lasted four or five days.  Then I got the cold/sinus thing which is still hanging around two weeks later.  And for the icing on the February cake, we've spent the last 36+ hours in the ER.  My husband had a bit of a health scare but after about 45 thousand tests/procedures and even more medicines, they hope to send him home shortly.  We're just waiting for the final approval from the doctor.


On a more positive note, the hubster will be fine, although we may end up divorced after all my future nagging about taking his health more seriously.  

And, I finished the Rambling Rows blanket.  That photo is the best I can do from ER.  I never got around to taking a photo of the finished blanket.  But yeah, I went with the icord border and am glad I did.  I don't know why I was dreading it so much.  The icord knitting went super fast - much, much faster than a garter border would have been.  After being on the To Knit list for four years, I'm pretty dang excited to be done with that blanket.  I even already got the loose ends woven in!

Maybe February doesn't suck so bad after all.


Saturday, February 17, 2024

Cupcakes and Wine

I hope you had a nice Valentine's Day.  I got Mucinex and tissues.  I can't believe that less than a week after having that horrible stomach bug, I got the cold/sinus/flu bug.  Thankfully, the day before I got sick this time around, I'd accidentally bought myself cupcakes.


I didn't mean to buy so many.  I was at work and noticed the Key Lime cupcakes.  And the strawberry sounded good too but... Key Lime!  I grabbed a box and did a price check.  They were on a Buy One Get One type sale so... I went back and got the strawberry too.  But while I was grabbing the strawberry, I noticed the lemon.  I love lemon flavored deserts.  And if I was going to get key lime, strawberry and lemon, I had to get the fourth box so....  Now I have cupcakes!

What I don't have is wine bottles.


I saw this idea on Facebook.  I feel terrible that I'm not sharing the source but I guess the fever got to me and I didn't keep track of where it came from.  I just remember seeing it on Facebook.  Anyway.... I have a lot of those plants and am constantly rooting pieces of it and I absolutley love this idea!  The problem is, just a few weeks ago, I threw away over 20 empty wine bottles I'd been saving for a 'one of these days I'll make something with these'  type craft project.  Doh!  Oh well.  Guess I just need to drink more wine.  


Meanwhile, I've continued knitting on Rambling Rows.  I've made a little more progress since taking that photo.  I'm currently on block 52 out of 55.  I am so excited to get this baby finished.  It's only been four years in the making.  The problem is, once I'm 'finished,' I need to dig through the stash pile and find a skein or two to knit a border around it.  I'm torn between a garter border or an icord border.  I want the icord border but I'm having a hard time mentally facing that much icord. Not sure why - icord is pretty simple and would probably take less time than a garter border, but....

While I try to choose border styles, here's a picture of Hayden's Valentine's Day hair-do.


She had heart hair!  After the photo was taken, her mom even turned the heart red by rubbing red eyeshadow over it.  So stinking cute.

And now, I'm going to go finish my Mucinex, eat cupcakes and drink wine.

Happy knitting!

Sunday, February 11, 2024

Sunday Supper - Spicy Bok choy

Well this isn't the best way to kick off the return of Sunday Suppers because I forgot to take a photo, but it was good and I want a record of what I did so I can make it again sometime soon so...

But first, a little backstory.  You know how I like to make a short story long. ๐Ÿ˜Š

Last year, I decided to get healthy, or at least eat super healthy.  Well, super healthy compared to the way I'd been eating.  I sort of became one of those annoying people who talk about calories and fat grams and the number of carbs in foods.  I was annoying, but felt great!  Then I went to the doctor for my six month blood work and all my numbers came back even worse.  I pretty much said "'ef it" and went back to eating ice cream and potato chips.  

While my tastebuds may love chips and ice cream, my body doesn't.  I can tell a difference in how I feel, and even how my brain doesn't function as well on all the salt and sugar. So screw the bloodwork numbers.  I'm going to eat what physically makes me feel good.  I'm back to eating healthy foods.  Healthy foods plus a little more bread than I should probably have.  Whatever. 

Anyway, I'm trying to incorporate more vegetables into my diet. And I recently discovered bok choy.  I think in my two years cashiering at the grocery store, only three people have bought it, but one of those three was going on about how versatile it is and how good it is for you so... I've been experimenting with bok choy recipes.

My newest creation I'm calling Spicy Bok Choy.  I thought it was delicious, and super simple.  

Spicy Bok Choy

Mexican Chorizo
2 large carrots
1 large bunch of bok choy
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 tbsp olive oil

Heat olive oil in a large pot and add Chorio.  
Grate the carrots and add to pot.
Slice bok choy thinly and add to pot.
Add chicken broth and cover.
Stirring frequently, cook until bok choy is softened.

I'd never cooked with Chorizo before but yum!  It's another one of those things I kept seeing people buy, but I'd never tried.  I think I'll be adding it to a lot of dishes in the future.

Saturday, February 10, 2024

It's raining. Again.

Goodness! It's been a wet winter.  Sadly, we've had no real snow, but we have had 9+ inches of rain since the first of December.  And it's raining again today.  Good grief!  I really shouldn't complain because we are now 'water front' rather than 'swamp mud' fronted. The view is definitely nicer.

Anyway...

I've been knitting.


After finishing the brown striped socks, I pulled Rambling Rows out of the UFO pile.  According to Ravelry, I started this Cottage Creations blanket in April, 2020.  I've knit a few of these blankets before and really like the pattern. It's super simple but the color changes keep you from getting bored, and best of all, the blocks are large-ish so there are only 100's of ends to weave in at the end instead of 1,000's.  

The blanket is made up of multiple sizes of mitered squares and rectangles, it's super easy to knit and it's a great way to use up leftover yarns.  For this version, I'm using fingering weight and it's going to be more of an oversized baby/lap blanket size.  I'm thinking seriously of knitting another (or maybe 3 more) and sewing them together to form a blanket big enough for a large bed.  But considering it's taken me four years to get this far.... probably not.  But on a positive note, I'm on block 47 out of 55.  Here's hoping I can stick with it and actually get it finished.  


I'm really enjoying this 'finishing' thing.  I finished the summer/4th of July diamond painting.  I'm not really into the shiny/sparkley way the finished pieces look (although I LOVE my sparkley snowflake coasters) but I do enjoy attaching the diamond dots to the backing.  It's so mindless and meditative.  I went a little crazy last summer and ordered multiple coaster sets and three large seasonal designs.  There's this one for summer, an autumn one with pumpkins, and a winter one with a snowman.  They're all the same size and the idea is to buy one frame that I can move the diamond paintings in and out of seasonally.  The goal is to finish one each quarter.  We'll see how that goes.

And, I finished the shawl.


I haven't blocked it and honestly, I may just skip that process entirely because the yarn is so soft and drapey as is.  I used almost 5 full skeins of Obsidian City Tweed and most of a skein of Snowbank.  I didn't use a pattern, it's just a simple triangular, bottom up, garter stitch shawl.  Easy peasy and now I have another item checked off the list and 6 skeins of yarn out of the stash pile.  Win/win.

Happy knitting!


Sunday, February 4, 2024

Another Checkmark in the FO Column

Sorry this is a day late.  I've got the Norovirus and well, it was impossible to accomplish anything yesterday.  I don't remember ever being that sick before, but, the vomiting has stopped at least and I'm weighing 8 pounds less today than yesterday.  

Anyway...

I moved another project from the  WIP column to the FO column.


Actually, I'd finished the knitting weeks ago but the socks were still lounging around waiting to have the toes kitchnered.  I used Paton KroySocks in the Brownies colorway.  And no, they don't match perfectly but I don't care.  Thankfully, I've never needed my socks to be matchy-matchy.  It's a good thing because my feet are so big I have to use the whole skein.  I can't be wasting yardage trying to get the starting point to match.

I'm really enjoying this 'get everything finished' goal.  I thought I'd finish an old project, knit a new one, finish an old one, knit a new one... but it feels so good to get things finished and scratched off the list I just keep finishing things. Yay me!

Saturday, January 27, 2024

Do you Sashiko?

I found a new craft to obsess over.  Sashiko.

Do you Sashiko?  Okay, I'm not sure if the proper way of writing it is 'sashiko' or 'Sashiko.'  Whatever.  It's a Japanese form of stitching and honestly, I haven't done much research on its history.  Facebook kept telling me I should join a Sashiko group and there was an interesting photo of someone's work and well, the rest is history.  I'm hooked and totally obsessed. 

Sashiko is basically a running stitch and the purists in the Facebook group get a little bent if you don't use the historically correct thread and fabric type, but there are plenty of folks in the group doing it their own way.  Can you guess which group I'm in?

Yep!  I'm a non-conformist Sashikoer.  


I only discovered Sashiko in October or November and I've already finished 3 pieces.  The first was a totebag kit I got from Amazon.  It was fun to stitch and went quickly.  The second project was much bigger.  Tumbling Blocks from KimonoMomo is partially pictured above.  I had SO much fun stitching it and both the fabric and thread were SO much nicer to work with than the Amazon kit.  KimonoMomo also had fantastic customer service.  And no, I'm not affiliated with KimonoMomo other than being a very happy customer.  So happy I ordered more pieces to stitch.  ... And have about 6 more in my shopping cart.

I may enjoy Sashikoing even more than knitting!

But let's focus on Tumbling Blocks. That's only a tiny portion of the piece in the photo.  I plan to turn it into a table runner and I've bought the fabric backing... from Michaels because I had a coupon.  Of course, the fabric person at Michaels had no sewing knowledge and well, neither do I.  I had planned to put a layer of felt/batting/something between the front and back so that it's not just floppy fabric laying on the table but the sales clerk suggested I not do that, specially since the inner piece/lining/whatever you want to call it won't be quilted.  It will only be attached on the outside seams.  So, assuming some of you are sew-ers (not sewers ha ha)/quilters, what would you reccomend?  

I can't wait to have Tumbling Blocks finished and on the table.

Happy stitching!

Saturday, January 20, 2024

I'm back???

I'm back!  I think.  Maybe.  I don't know.  I don't want to pin myself down to feeling like I have to post X number of times a week but I have missed talking to myself about yarn.  It's been almost a full year since I last posted.  Hard to believe!

I hope you've been well.  I'm ashamed to say I haven't kept up with anyone else's blog or even any form of social media. When I stopped blogging, I pretty much stopped internetting altogether.

So what have I been doing with my time?  I'm still working at the grocery store.  We are still living in my in-laws' house but it should be our house next week.  Fingers crossed.  They've been saying we'll close on the morgtage "next week" since two weeks before Christmas.  We moved all the in-laws' stuff we didn't want to keep out and we moved all our stuff in from storage.  Boy, was it nice to see my stuff again!  Our stuff had been in storage for four years!  Hayden, my granddaughter, is in pre-school and loving it.  And of course, I've been crafting.  I bought a loom and plan to be comfortable using it by the end of 2024.  I've been doing a lot of diamond painting.  It's delightfully tacky.  Ha ha.  Diamond painted things tend to be sparkley and I'm not really into sparkely artwork but I find the act of doing it to be very meditative and a little sparkle in my life won't kill me.  And of course, I've been knitting.  In 2023, I completed:

5 hats, 
4 sweaters,
2 pair of mittens, 
2 shawls, 
8 pairs of socks,
5 blankets and
2 Christmas ornaments.

The sad thing about all that knitting is that it didn't even make a dent in my stash pile. 



One of my 2023 goals was to go 90 days without buying any new yarn.  I didn't succeed with that goal.  But, I made my last yarn purchase on October 7th and today marks 105 days without buying yarn!  I am SO proud of myself!  I've been feeling overwhelmed by the stash pile for quite a while. Years, really.  

I finally cleaned out my closet (which is really a mini attic) the other day (on day 87) and tossed the old projects I  had no intention of finishing and organized all the remaining yarn.  All the bins won't even fit in the photo.  I have 16 of them.  And that's not counting the large cedar chest full that I can't even access because the chest has so much junk piled up on it.  Actually, I'd forgotten about the cedar chest yarn until just now.

Anyway, to make a long story a little longer, my plan is to go 120 days without buying yarn.  And then 150 days, then 180 days, and so on until I go a year without buying yarn.  Unless of course I run out first, but the likelihood of that happening is about the same as me winning the lottery.  The Big lottery.


Another goal for 2024 is to finish all the WIPs I have.  The 'rule' is I have to finish one WIP then I can knit anyting I want, then finish a WIP, and knit what I want.... rinse and repeat untill all the WIPs are finished.  They may not all get finished in 2024 but there's hope.  I was pretty ruthless when I was frogging/tossing old projects I knew I didn't like anymore.

Currently, I'm knitting a simple triangular shawl from the WIP pile.  I'm using Obsidian City Tweed from Knit Picks and a US 8 needle.  I'm currently at that stage where the shawl is eating up yarn but not growing.  Or at least it feels like it's not growing.  I only have a few skeins left so it will soon go from WIP to FO status.  Yay!

And now, I'm going to go curl back up under my blanket and knit some more.  Until next time, stay warm!

Sunday, April 9, 2023

Sunday Supper - Creamed Eggs on Toast

Happy Easter!

Today's Sunday Supper recipe is a great way to use up all those hard boiled eggs you found on your Easter egg hunt.

photo courtesy of CopyKat Recpies

This recipe for creamed eggs on toast from copykat.com sounds easy enough and like a great way to use up those extra hard boiled eggs.

Enjoy!

Friday, April 7, 2023

Yikes!

Yikes!

I think I've made a decision.  And I am both excited and terrified.

As of today, my Etsy shop is closed and I no longer plan to blog on any kind of a routine schedule.  For that matter, I don't really even intend to blog anymore.  But you know me, I like to blather on about what I'm knitting so I may be back here sooner than expected.

And just in case I am making a HUGE mistake and instantly regret my decision, I'm going to put my Etsy shop on vacation rather than actually closing it.  I'll still be on Facebook (my personal page) and maybe I'll even post more on Instagram.  Maybe I'll even learn to TikTok, but I doubt it.  

Maybe I'll be back here sooner than expected.  But I'll no longer be thinking of Jeannie Gray Knits as a business.  Rather than a thing, Jeannie Gray Knits will simply be me knitting what I want, when I want, with the yarn I want.  I won't be worrying about what customers want and what they are willing to pay for.  

I've been thinking about this for a couple of months now.  Actually, that's not true.  I've been trying Not to think about it for a couple of months.  You see, back in January, I signed up for a class to help me take Jeannie Gray Knits to a level that fully finanically supports me.  And the class did what no other has done for me.  It finally made me face the fact that Jeannie Gray Knits is not profitable, nor sustainable.  At least not the way I've been doing it.  

So, I'm retiring.  I'm not quiting, I'm retiring.  I'm going to go knit what I want, when I want and with what yarns I want.  Instead of knitting for my Etsy shop, I'm going to knit for me, for my friends and family, and for the mutlitude of causes I've always wanted to knit for but never had time.  I'm going to learn to garden, maybe learn a new craft, and maybe, just maybe, even clean the house!  

I'm pretty excited about the idea.  I'm also terrified I'm making a huge mistake.  What on earth will I do with all the time I was spending on my business?  I may actually have to clean the house just to fill the hours.

But if I am making a huge mistake, it's fixable.  I'm not burning any bridges.  I'm just going on (semi ??) permanent vacation.  Thank you for sticking with me all these years.  I'm sure I'll see you around the web... and maybe at a fiber festival or two.  And maybe even back here in a few days when I panic because I suddenly have nothing to do but clean the house.  Yikes!

Sunday, April 2, 2023

Sunday Supper - Slow Cooker Mississippi Pork Roast

I hope you're a pork eater because we're going to be eating a LOT of pork over the next 800 years.  LOL  My grocery store keeps having Boston Butts on sale for half price and I keep buying them in multiples and tossing them in the freezer.  Then because they are frozen, we never cook them.  And this past week, they had pork roasts on sale.  It was a big sale so I bought a ton of those too.  Our freezer is now overflowing with pork.  So...


Slow Cooker Mississippi Pork Roast.  This recipe, from therecipecritic.com sounds really good and is super simple.  It doesn't get much easier than dumping a few things into the slow cooker.  The only difficult part is waiting for dinner time.

Now, if I can just remember to take one of those pork roasts out of the freezer...

Enjoy!

Friday, March 31, 2023

Hue Shift

 I couldn't help myself.


I had to start the Hue Shift afghan.  I just couldn't stand to wait any longer.


Hue Shift is a mitered square blanket knit with Brava from Knit Picks.  Or at least, mine is.  The pattern also includes instructions for using Mighty Stitch yarn.  Knit Picks sells kits with several different color combinations and there's even a crochet kit.  

The blanket is knit in four sections that you can arrange in different ways before sewing them together to get completely different looks.  I'm a little concerned about my ability to power through this blanket without putting it aside to knit something else but, the frequent color changes will keep it interesting and as luck would have it, the last section contains my favorite colors.  I'm hoping that motivates me to keep knitting.


Meanwhile, Hayden keeps me in stitches by making funny faces.


Happy knitting!

Sunday, March 26, 2023

Sunday Supper - Moroccan Carrots

 

photo courtesy of goodhousekeeping.com

Today's Sunday Supper recipe is for Good Housekeeping's Moroccan Carrots.  Easter is right around the corner and what with the diabetes diagnosis and all, I'm trying to focus on carrots, not candy.  

This recipe not only sounds delicious but also quick and simple.

Enjoy!

Friday, March 24, 2023

Northern Lights

I probably should have titled this post Everything But Knitting.  Oh well.

I spent most of my time off from work this past week doing yard work.  Last summer we thought we were moving and so we didn't exactly keep the flower beds in tip top shape. But since we've decided to stay  here (Have I mentioned that?  Yes, we decided to buy out my brother-in-law's half of my MIL's house and stay put.  I'm very happy not to have to move.)... Anyway... Since we've decided to stay and take ownership, Sarah and I are doing our best to take back control of the yard.  It's going to take us 100 years I fear.


The point of that story was, I haven't gotten much knitting done.  I haven't even touched the Winterfest sweater but the first Northern Lights Patons Kroy Sock sock is almost finished.  I've knit a little more than pictured and have started the toe decreases.  I'm 99.99999% sure I will run out of  yarn before the toe is long enough but I have some coordinating yarn and it will just have to have a weird looking toe.  I'm okay with weird toes.


Yesterday was GORGEOUS and a perfect day to spend parked on the deck with my knititng and a book.  Books actually.  I'm also reading Stephen King's Fairytail but that one's on my Kindle and I read until the battery died.  The day was so beautiful my bee friend stopped by for a visit.  I was surprised how interested in my non-sweetened black coffee he was.


I can't wait until the danger of frost has past.  I bought this weeping pussy willow tree from the grocery store and expected to kill it the first week I owned it, but it's producing leaves like crazy.  I think it just might survive.  I'm pretty excited about this little tree.  It's supposed to grow to seven feet tall and eight feet in diameter.  I've always loved weeping willows and my mom loved pussy willows so...  And since we live on the edge of a swamp, it shouldn't be a problem that this plant's roots search out water sources.  It should be very happy here.


The poor dog has taken up a bit of time this week too.  He hurt his paw and he's been having some tummy problems so he's stuck wearing the cone of shame and he's enjoying a diet of nothing but chicken and rice.  The problem comes in that he struggles to eat with the cone on and gets rice EVERYWHERE!  He's one of those dogs who likes to take their food  out of the bowl, put it on the floor, then eat it.  Except now, the cone knocks the rice every which way and if we take the cone off, he eats his foot instead of his food.  We are now having to sweep the entire downstairs about 8 times a day.  


And most exciting, Hayden turned three recently.  My husband and I weren't able to attend her actual birthday party so we threw her a simple dinner and cake party.  She was pretty excited about the cake.

And now, I'm off to finish that sock before I have to go to work this afternoon.

Happy Knitting!